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Diabetes mellitus is emerging as a major public health probelm in Saudi Arabia in parallel with the worldwide diabetes pandemic, which is having a particular impact upon the Middle East and the third world. This pandemic has accompanied the adoption of a modern lifestyle and the abandonment of a traditional lifestyle, with a resultant increase in rates of obesity and other chronic non-communicable diseases. The indigenous Saudi population seems to have a special genetic predisposition to develop type 2 diabetes, which is further amplified by a rise in obesity rates, a high rate of consanguinity and the presence of other variables of the insulin resistance syndrome. We highlight the epidemiology, clinical and complications profiles of diabetes in Saudi people. Diabetes is well studied in Saudi Arabia; however, there seems to be little research in the area of education and health care delivery. This is of paramount importance to offset the perceived impact on health care delivery services, to lessen chronic diabetes complications, and to reduce the expected morbidity and mortality from diabetes.

Objectives: To determine the incidence, diversity of adverse drug reactions (ADRs), and impact of pharmacovigilance on reporting it., Methods: This prospective and retrospective study was carried out in the Department of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia between January to December 2011 in 600 patients of ADR. Data regarding age and gender distribution of the patients, incidence rate, drugs, body systems/organs involved in ADR, time of occurrence of adverse drug reactions, total number of drugs administered, and impact of pharmacovigilance on finding the incidence rate of ADR were recorded. Comparison of the 2 data was carried out to determine the impact of pharmacovigilance., Results: Incidence rate of ADRs in retrospective study was 3.1% and 5.5% in the prospective study. The highest incidence of ADR (retrospective 15% and prospective 14.5%) was observed in both groups in patients receiving more than 10 drugs. The frequency of ADR in relation to age in both groups was highest in patients of age >60 years; it was 52.7% in retrospective study and 54.5% in prospective study. Antibiotics were the more frequently involved in ADR, (48.5% in prospective study and 36.9% in retrospective study). The system most commonly involved in ADR was gastrointestinal tract 47.4% in retrospective study and 57.6% in prospective study. None of the ADR proved to be fatal., Conclusion: Low incidence of hospitalized ADR in our study (5.5%) is due to lack of awareness in healthcare professionals in reporting ADR. Undoubtedly, pharmacovigilance brought more patients with ADR to record.